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Housing standards:evidence and research
Applying housing standards:London case studies
A report prepared by CABE with the
assistance of Richards Partington
Architects in May 2010.
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CONTENTS 1 Introduction Page 1
2 City Quarter Page 2
3 Church Street Page 7
4 Barking Riverside Page 12
5 Mortimer Road Page 13
6 Curwen Apartments Page 15
A1 Appendix 1 – Compliant Typologies Page 16
A2 Appendix 2 – Further Details on Sites Page 19
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2. CITY QUARTER
Analysis of the Current Proposal
City Quarter in the London Borough ofTower Hamlets is a 0.25 hectare site on the
eastern fringe of the City of London. The site
has the highest level of accessibility (PTAL
6b). The site is part of the wider
redevelopment of Goodman’s Fields. The
part of the project considered here
comprises the conversion of a listed
commercial building, The Sugar House, andthe construction of a new-build apartment
building alongside.
The current proposals have a density of 348
units per hectare. This is within the 215-405
units per hectare range set by the London
Plan density matrix.
In both buildings there are a significantnumber of units that fail to achieve the
overall sizes required by the LHDG.
Consequently, many of the internal rooms
are also too small. Many of the apartments
do not achieve the dual aspect requirement.
FIGURE 1 - CITY QUARTER EXISTING SITE AND PROPOSAL
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Analysis of the Current Proposal
The drawings on the right show for the
typical floors in both building, those units
that do not meet the LHDG requirementsrelating to dual aspect or minimum floor
area. A significant number of units fail to
meet the minimum sizes and a small
number of single aspect 1-bedroom units
are north facing and therefore do not meet
the requirements.
Within the Sugar House the constraints ofthe existing structure are responsible for the
undersizing of three out of the four affected
units. Both buildings comply with the
requirement for no more than 8 units per
floor to be served by a single stair core.
FIGURE 2 - EXISTING PROPOSAL SHOWING UNITS NOT MEETING KEY LHDG REQUIREMENTS
Top – Hooper’s Yard typi cal floor Below – Sugar House typical floor
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Compliant Proposals The London Plan Density Matrix range of
215-405 units per hectare translates into a
range of 54 101 units for this site. Within thenew-build Hooper’s Yard a reconfiguration of
the layout allows all units to meet the LHDG
(see left). Within the existing Sugar House
building some improvement is possible but
the constraints of the structure mean that
some units are too small to qualify as 1-
bedroom flats. Because of listed building
status some units do not have the requiredexternal space provision.
Unit Mix
24 x 2-bed, 4-person flats
18 x 2-bed, 3-person flats
36 x 1-bedroom flats
12 x studios (less than 50m2)
TOTAL UNITS - 90
Note: The figures above are based on the
assumption that all floors have the same
layout, since full floor plans were
unavailable.
FIGURE 4- HOOPER’S YARD TYPICAL FLOORPLAN - LHDG COMPLIANT DESIGN
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Compliant Proposals Working within the listed existing structure ofthe Sugar House imposes certain
constraints that make it difficult to fully
comply with the LHDG. Despite the
difficulties it is possible to bring several of
the undersized apartments into compliance.
However, in two instances it is not possible
to enlarge the flats sufficiently to become 1-
bedroom flats and must therefore be classed
as studios. Due to the need to preserve the
outward appearance of the building it is not
possible to provide balconies on the street
side. Therefore, four of the flats do not have
any outdoor space provision. However, for
the other three, it is possible to provide
larger balconies on the courtyard side in line
with the LHDG requirement.
FIGURE 5 - SUGAR HOUSE TYPICAL FLOOR - LHDG COMPLIANT DESIGN
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3. CHURCH STREET
Analysis of the Current Proposal
Church Street, Plaistow is a 0.2 hectare sitein a mixed urban setting in East London.The site has a high level of accessibility:PTAL 4.
The current proposals have a density of 264units per hectare. This is slightly above the70-260 units per hectare range set by theLondon Plan Density Matrix.
The accommodation is divided between twobuildings. The building at the rear of the sitecomplies with most aspects of the LHDGalthough there are some rooms that do notachieve the minimum required widths.
The building at the front of the site is moreproblematic, as it contains a significantnumber of single aspect flats including
several north facing one-bedroomapartments.
Generally, most units lack the necessaryprovision of external space.
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FIGURE 6 - CHURCH STREET EXISTING SITE AND PROPOSAL
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Analysis of the Current Proposal
The drawings on the right show for theground floor and a typical upper floor, those
units that do not meet the LHDGrequirements relating to dual aspect.
It should also be noted that the building atthe front of the site facing onto ChurchStreet has more than 25 dwellings servedfrom a single lift.
Whilst an additional lift in these situations isnot a mandatory requirement of the LHDG, itis recommended.
FIGURE 7 - EXISTING UNITS NOT MEETING KEY LHDG REQUIREMENTS
LEFT – Ground Floor / RIGHT – Typical Upper Floor
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Compliant Proposals The drawings on the right show for theground floor and a typical upper floor, those
rooms within dwellings that do not meet theminimum space standards.
It also shows those units that have no orinsufficient private outdoor space.
Despite these shortcomings, all dwellings doat least appear to meet the overall areasrequired by the LHDG.
FIGURE 8 - EXISTING UNITS NOT MEETING KEY LHDG REQUIREMENTS
LEFT – Ground Floor / RIGHT – Typical Upper Floor
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FIGURE 10 - CHURCH STREET LHDG COMPLIANT DESIGN
LEFT – Second Floor CENTRE – Third Floor RIGHT – Fourth Floor
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4. BARKING RIVERSIDE
Analysis of the Current Proposal
Barking Riverside is a large development inthe Thames Gateway. The site has a
moderate level of accessibility: PTAL 2/3.
The BEBO block is one of the housing
typologies that form part of the overall
masterplan. Analysis of one of these blocks
has shown that the number of units achieved
falls within the 70-170 units per hectare range
set by the London Density Matrix, equivalent
to 167 units per hectare.
The analysis has identified that the design is
largely compliant with the LHDG.
Importantly, the overall units sizes, open
space provisions, floor to ceiling heights,
access arrangements and dual aspectprovisions are fully compliant. There are a few
minor issues to do with room sizes that it was
thought could be resolved without difficulty.
Consequently, alternative proposals were not
developed for this site.
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FIGURE 11
BARKING RIVERSIDE
EXISTING SITE AND PROPOSAL
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5. MORTIMER ROAD
Analysis of the Current Proposal
Mortimer Road, Brent is a 0.1 hectare site in asuburban setting of terraced houses. The sitehas a very high level of accessibility: PTAL 6a.
The current proposals for Mortimer Road,Brent have a density of 142 units per hectare.This is slightly above the 70-130 units perhectare range set by the London Plan DensityMatrix.
The three storey building has two stair coresand contains 14 units. Some internal roomsfailed to meet the required sizes and inparticular the bedrooms are too narrow.
The portion of the site available for buildingappears to be constrained by the generalbuilding frontage line along the street and aright-of-light for an adjacent property. The
height also appears constrained to threestoreys.
FIGURE 12
MORTIMER ROAD
EXISTING SCHEME
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Compliant Proposals
The London Density Matrix range of 70-130
units per hectare translates into a range of 7-
13 units for this site.The study shows that a range of units sizes
can be provided on the site that comply both
with the LHDG and the London Plan Density
Matrix.
In both cases the proposed building would
have 3 storeys. In option 1 there would be one
stair core. In option 2 there would be two.
Option 1
6 x 3-bedroom flats
3 x 1-bedroom flat
TOTAL UNITS – 9
Option 2
9 x 2-bedroom flats
3 x 1-bedroom flat
TOTAL UNITS – 12
FIGURE 13 - MORTIMER ROAD LHDG COMPLIANT DESIGN
OPTION 1
OPTION 2
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6. CURWEN APARTMENTS SCHEME
Analysis of the Current Proposal
Curwen Apartments, John Street, Stratford isa 0.6 hectare site in a mixed urban setting in
East London. The site has a high level of
accessibility: PTAL 4.
The current proposals have a density of 172
units per hectare. This is within the 70-260
units per hectare range set by the London
Density Matrix. The analysis identified that the
design was largely compliant with the LHDG.
Importantly, the overall units sizes, open
space provisions, floor to ceiling heights,
access arrangements and dual aspect
provisions are fully compliant. There are a few
minor issues to do with room sizes that it was
thought could be resolved without difficulty.
Consequently, alternative proposals were not
developed for this site.
FIGURE 14 - CURWEN APARTMENTS, JOHN STREET, EXISTING SCHEME
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APPENDIX 1 –HOUSING TYPOLOLOGIES
To make the process of designing the case
study sites more efficient, a range of different
LHDG compliant building types were
developed.
Example 1 shows buildings which approach
the limit for the maximum allowable number of
dwellings that can be accessed from each
stair core, which is up to 8. These
arrangements work best for stand-alonebuildings and are less easily integrated into
tight urban sites. The orientation of these
blocks is important as the single-aspect 1-
bedroom apartments cannot be north facing or
within 45º of north.
EXAMPLE 1
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Example 2 shows how two compact 2-
bedroom units can be paried around a single
core. The units are dual aspect and at 70m2meet the minimum area set out in the LHDG.
A 7m2 balcony is provided and there is 27m2
of living space. The block has a relatively
shallow plan; only 9.5m and so is suitable for
sites with limited depth. Multiple blocks can be
joined together to form a continuous frontage.
This type is particularly suitable for low-rise
blocks as no lift is required if there are fewerthan 4 floors.
Example 3 shows how three units can be
paried around a single core. This type has the
advantage of easily providing a range of unit
sizes. The 2 and 3 bedroom apartments are
dual aspect. The 1 bedroom apartment is
single aspect and must therefore not face
north. The block has a medium depth of
13.5m. Multiple blocks can be joined together
to form a continuous frontage. Balconies are
provided in accordance with the area
requirements of the LHDG.
EXAMPLE 2
EXAMPLE 3
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Example 4 shows how three units can beparied around a single core. This type has theadvantage of easily providing a range of unitsizes. The 2 and 3 bedroom apartments aredual aspect. The 1 bedroom apartment issingle aspect and must therefore not facenorth. The block has a medium depth of13.5m. Multiple blocks can be joined togetherto form a continuous frontage. Balconies areprovided in accordance with the arearequirements of the LHDG.
EXAMPLE 4
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APPENDIX 2 – FUTHER SITE DETAILS
The following information relates to the original schemes proposed for each of the sites considered in this technical paper. It is provided for information andfor completeness.
SITE BOROUGH DEVELOPER ARCHITECT
City Quarter, Leman Street Tower Hamlets Berkeley Homes Sheppard Robson
Church Street Newham One Housing Group Allford Hall Monaghan Morris
Barking Riverside Barking & Dagenham Homes & Communities Agency / Bellway Barton Willmore (Agent)
Mortimer Road Brent Crossier Properties Ltd Chassey Last Architects
Curwen Apartments, John Street Newham East Thames Group Greenhill Jenner Architects
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